Reform Rodeo

Photo by David Monniaux

1. The HITECH Act’s Breach Notification rules are now in effect. As is noted in the article, many are questioning some of the limitations in the act– which may reduce the Act’s impact on protecting privacy.

2. Eugene Volokh’s blog discusses the constitutionality of an individual mandate.

3. A persuasive article from Fortune Magazine describing how Baucus’ Finance Committee bill will raise taxes on the middle class, and in dong so violate the core tenets of the Obama administration.

4. A nicely compiled listing of the amendments that have been put forward during the Finance Bill’s mark up.

5. A FiveThirtyEight post questions those who presume that health reform is inevitable, raising some sobering thoughts.

6. Under the Obama administration, The FDA has provided a black box warning for the anti-nausea drug Phenergan, presumably in light of the Supreme Court’s recent rejection of the drug manufacturer’s claim that federal regulations preempt state court’s from suing drug manufacturers for defective warnings.

7. In case you missed it: A post from Health Reform Watch by Professor Timothy S. Jost on Health Care Cooperatives was cited by Jacob S. Hacker in an article over at the New England Journal of Medicine’s web site. Hacker’s article, “Poor Substitutes–Why Cooperatives and Triggers Can’t Achieve the Goals of a Public Option,” is well written and well read.